Malaysian Airlines says 10 of its staff were detained for almost 10 hours by more than 200 family members of passengers on board MH370.

They also say an airline security supervisor was attacked while on duty at Beijing’s Lido Hotel, where family members have been staying and receiving briefings on the plane’s disappearance.

A relative of MH370 passengers shows a letter of demands. Photo: AP

Angry relatives of the passengers have for weeks accused Malaysia of a secretive and incompetent response to the disappearance of the Boeing 777 with 239 people on board during a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8.

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While the 10 staff members were being held in the hotel’s ballroom Chinese relatives held an overnight protest outside the Malaysian embassy in Beijing.

In a statement released on Friday night the airline revealed the drama began during a scheduled briefing session at the hotel on Thursday afternoon.

Relatives cry as they wait for Malaysia embassy staff. Photo: AP

The airline said the family members “expressed dissatisfaction in obtaining details of the missing aircraft”.

“The over 200 family members requested for the presence of a Malaysian official as only Malaysia Airlines staff were present at the briefing session,” the airline said.

“The 10 airline staff, then, were told to wait at the ballroom while a group of 60 family members left for the Malaysian embassy in an attempt to get a government official to attend the briefing,” it said.

“The group finally released staff at 1.44am Friday.”

The airline said in another incident security supervisor Kalaichelven Shunmugam was “attacked by a Chinese family member” while on duty at the hotel on 22 April.

“The airline staff (member) tried to stop an aggressive family member who demanded access to the secretariat, when the latter kicked the staff (member) in his left knee,” the airline said.

The supervisor suffered only slight injury.

The airline says it has filed a police report on the incident.

Before the statement was released, media reports said tension had boiled over at Thursday’s briefing at the hotel where Malaysia Airlines has been paying for the relatives’ accommodation.

“We want somebody from the embassy to come out and tell us why they didn’t come,” said relative Steven Wang.

He said about 100 people had waited outside the embassy overnight.

Police were guarding the embassy on Friday.

Dozens of relatives staged another noisy protest outside the embassy last month.

Malaysia has promised to release a preliminary report next week into the plane’s disappearance.

The government has copped a barrage of international criticism over its cautious approach not to release or confirm information obtained by an international investigation group unless it has first been verified and corroborated.

Police conducting a separate criminal investigation have released only scant information about their findings.